Main navigation

Homemade Vanilla: The Legacy and The Recipe

Ah, vanilla. A baker’s gold. Have you ever wondered how vanilla extract came to be? I did. My curiosity as to what was in the little bottle at the store and what made it so darn EXPENSIVE led me here to share this experiment and history with you. If you love to bake, crafting your own homemade vanilla will be one of the best things you ever did.

Homemade Vanilla: The Starter

According to the sources used in the Wikipedia article on vanilla, this intoxicating flavoring comes from a pod that grows on the plants of the orchid genus Vanilla.[1](See my picture from Phipps Conservatory below!) This plant was originally cultivated in Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica by the Aztecs and was called tlilxochitl. [2]

Additionally, if you enjoy mythology you will love this. According to Totonac lore, this orchid was born into the world when Princess Xanat fled to the forest with her lover after her father expressly forbid it so. The two were captured and beheaded. As the story goes, in the location where their blood touched the earth, the lovely vanilla orchid began to grow.[3]

Conquistador Hernando Cortes is credited with its travelling to Europe where the little plant experienced difficulties with pollination due to a lack of the native Melipona Bee. Uh oh! What is a continent to do? Well, long story short, they figured out how to hand pollinate it.[3] Imagine people spreading the little pollinators flower to flower with teeny brushes (today Q-Tips are often used). Now, can you imagine a French patisserie left without the use of vanilla?

The vanilla bean spotted in its native environs. (Phipps Conservatory)

These super cool little bean pods turn black when they are picked and cured, hence the Aztec name tlilxochitl or “black flower.”[3] You can use them by splitting one down the middle with a paring knife and carefully scraping out the seeds. These can be added to creme (mmmmmmm) or desserts. Personally, I take the bean pod leftover and throw it in my sugar jar and it infuses my sugar with the most lovely flavor and NO WASTE! My heart be stilled.

Now, if you buy extract in the store, it has usually been steeped in ethyl alcohol or a combination of water and alcohol (cheap). Mexican vanilla has a reputation for adding weird compounds such as coal tar to enhance flavor and imitation vanilla gets its lovely taste from paper mill runoff. If you buy in the store, read your label please. Know the words or be happy eating tar.

Since you are going to see a lot of words thrown around on bottles of vanilla, this clarification may help. Bourbon-Madagascar vanilla and Mexican vanilla are made from the strain v.planifolia and Tahitian vanilla and “West Indian” Vanilla from the v.tahitiensis and v.pompona strains respectively. Each has varying characteristics, though I have only tried McCormick’s two versions, Nielsen-Massey Bourbon-Madagascar (nice) and a watered down Mexican bottle bought at a resort made from the same bean. Hands down, the Nielsen wins as do the straight beans themselves. But let’s face it, if you bake a lot, those beans get mighty pricey and even the bottles add up. What to do? Enter homemade vanilla.

If you find well-priced beans this makes more vanilla extract than the average family can use in a year AND being it is not watered down, higher strength. This will last indefinitely.

Slice 8 vanilla beans down the middle, scraping out their seeds. Place four pods worth of seeds in each jar. Slice pods in half and place four in each jar.

Fill one jar with vodka.

Fill one jar with rum.

Cap tightly.

Put in dark location for at least two months. Shake when you remember.

Advice: Wait as long as you can. Take this as a spiritual exercise in patience. My bottle is now three years old and going strong. I just keep topping it off with alcohol if I have it on hand and add more pods after I finish with them for a recipe. The flavor just keeps getting more nuanced with the addition of different types of beans.

The Herb Society of Nashville (2008-05-21). “The Life of Spice. “The Herb Society of Nashville. Retrieved 2008-07-23. “Following Montezuma’s capture, one of Cortés’ officers saw him drinking “chocolatl” (made of powdered cocoa beans and ground corn flavored with ground vanilla pods and honey). The Spanish tried this drink themselves and were so impressed by this new taste sensation that they took samples back to Spain.’ and ‘Actually it was vanilla rather than the chocolate that made a bigger hit and by 1700 the use of vanilla was spread over all of Europe. Mexico became the leading producer of vanilla for three centuries. – Excerpted from ‘Spices of the World Cookbook’ by McCormick and ‘The Book of Spices’ by Frederic Rosengarten, Jr”

Silver Cloud Estates. “History of Vanilla.” Silver Cloud Estates. Retrieved 2008-07-23. “In 1837 the Belgian botanist Morren succeeded in artificially pollinating the vanilla flower. On Reunion, Morren’s process was attempted, but failed. It was not until 1841 that a 12-year-old slave by the name of Edmond Albius discovered the correct technique of hand-pollinating the flowers.”

Reader Interactions

Comments

Lovely.
I have a bottle of vodka based extract that I started over 10 years ago. I just top it up with vodka when it is getting too low, and every year I add another few vanilla pods. It is so rich and luscious now.
My husband has been known to sneak the bottle and add it to his coffee……
Chocolate perfumed orchids are fabulous. My dad used to grow them in Australia when I was a child. Haven’t seen them since.

Oh how wonderful! It is nice to just keep topping it off. At this point mine is a bout 3 years and it is just starting to have a nice depth to the flavor. I even added a bit of gingersnap liquor to it that I had around and it gave it a nice subtle richness.

I’m partial to Indian vanilla beans. I usually get them from the guys at beanilla.com. Kinda smokey and chocolately. Killer vanilla extract with brandy, I don’t think vodka really adds anything. I also go thru it like crazy as well. They are awesome for making home made kahlua.

Mmmmmm. Thanks for the new pairing, Michele. The hope with the vodka was a clean slate for the vanilla to shine through. I am intrigued to branch out to other combinations, however. I might want to get a third jar going. 🙂 Hello holiday baking!

I got my vanilla beans from vanillabeansusa.com…great price…get the b grade if you are making extract since b grade are just ones that are dried out more (thus less water in you extract…more flavor) My kids love the orchid room at the phipps…they have ones that smell like chocolate there too!

Ooooh, thanks for the tip, Citysister! I think mine were a bit moist so it may be why it is taking longer to get the robust flavor I want. Chocolate orchids? Oh man. I must smell these. Isn’t Phipps magical….

Primary Sidebar

Simplify life. Get a dose of all things beautiful straight to your inbox.

Don’t miss Love & Wild Honey here as well!

Disclosure: In order to support L&WH, I may use advertisements, have sponsored posts or use affiliate links in my posts & may receive compensation for it. It will always be products that fit w/ my ethos.